The 2am Club

It's 2am. You're wide awake, soaking wet, anxious about everything and nothing. Your body doesn't feel like yours anymore. And you have no idea why.

This episode is for you.

Stephanie Parks gets honest about her perimenopause journey — the symptoms that blindsided her, the dinner conversation that changed everything, and the labs, supplements, and mindset shifts that brought her back to herself. Real talk, no filter, and yes — black castor oil in the belly button makes an appearance.

Welcome to the 2am Club. You are not alone.

Champagne Smiles & Magical Miles is a podcast about living with grace, choosing joy, and celebrating the moments — big and small — that make life meaningful.

Hosted by Stephanie Parks, each episode blends mindset, self-care, family traditions, and everyday intention with a touch of Disney magic and real-life reflection. From the words we use and the habits we build to the kindness we extend to ourselves and others, this podcast is an invitation to slow down, show up, and live on purpose.

You’ll hear favorite segments like Words Matter, Magical Miles, Sparkle & Glow Up, and Sip of the Week — each designed to inspire, encourage, and help you leave every episode with simple, practical takeaways you can easily implement in daily life.

Whether you’re in a season of growth, rest, or celebration, this space is for you.

Because every mile matters, every word counts, and life is meant to be lived with grace, joy, and a whole lot of celebrating. ✨🥂

🎙️ New episodes weekly. Follow along and join the celebration.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

I want to ask you something. Have you ever felt like your body just stopped cooperating, like you were doing everything right, eating well, moving your body, taking care of yourself, and the results just weren't coming. And on top of that, you weren't sleeping. You're waking up at 2 a.m. soaking wet, lying there anxious about everything and nothing at the same time, and nobody told you this was coming. That's what we're talking about today. And if any of that sounds familiar, you're in exactly the right place. Let's start this episode with one goal to make your day better than it was five minutes ago. This is Champagne Smiles and Magical Miles, and I'm Stephanie Parks. Welcome home. Last week we talked about surgeries and GLP1s and your body. And thank you so much for the supportive community that we have here. Today we're staying in that honest space, but this conversation is one I wish I'd started sooner. We're talking about perimenopause, the thing no one wants to talk about and I didn't see coming. You become a stranger in your own body, and I didn't accept it for longer than I'm caring to admit. I hope this episode speaks to someone out there in my community. Hopefully it will help you. If you're in it, this episode is for you. If you're approaching it, this episode is really for you. And if you love someone going through it and you want to understand what they're experiencing, send this to them. It might be the most helpful thing you've done for them this week. So I was traveling for work with a group of colleagues, women around my age, and we were having dinner, and the conversation turned to how we were all feeling. Not professionally, but personally, in our own bodies. And what happened at that table is what I want this whole entire episode to feel like. Just being honest with each other. No filters, no pretending, just this is what's happening to me. Is it happening to you? And for all of us, it's the honesty that led me the answers I've been looking for for a long time. So find your table, find the people you can be honest with and just understand that sometimes information that changes your life comes sometimes from a doctor, but not always from the doctor's office. Sometimes it's from a dinner table with people who understand you and get it. So let me take you back. It started quietly, the way most things do. They sneak up on you. I noticed I was gaining weight. We talked about that before. I wasn't myself. I was, you know, at one point in my early 40s, I was full of life and things were going great. And then I got pregnant and had Madeline and then COVID. And but I was eating well, exercising, doing all the things I'd always done, and nothing was moving the scale or budging. My clothes weren't fitting, and I couldn't figure out why. Oh then all of a sudden the sleep issues. Asleep is very important to your body, as you know, and I couldn't sleep well. I'd always been a good sleeper. As soon as my head is fellow, I fell asleep, but I was restless, my legs were hurting, I was uncomfortable, I couldn't get settled. And then I was waking up at night. I knew immediately something wasn't right. And then of course my period started becoming irregular. First, I thought I was pregnant every month when I would miss or when I was late. Ha ha. I was just getting old. It was unpredictable because my hormones were going crazy, which is not very much fun. And then when you wake up in those nights, what's the worst? You're soaked, your pajamas are soaked, your husband's like, What's wrong with your body? Why are you soaking wet? And something I'd never experienced before in my life is anxiety. And I want to be careful here because I know anxiety means different things to different people. And for me, it was lying in bed at 2 a.m. wide awake, my brain going full speed, going through everything I hadn't finished, everything I should have done differently, trying to talk myself down just to sleep. It'll all be fine in the morning. And then you start the whole cycle over again. It was exhausting and it was lonely because I didn't have the understanding or language for what was happening. I didn't know that this was a thing. I just knew something felt off. And I'm gonna pause right here and say if that sounds like what you're going through right now, understand that you're not broken, you're not losing your mind. You are going through one of the most significant hormonal shifts your body has experienced. And if no one sat you down and explained this to you and told you what you're gonna feel like, I hope today that you're gonna hear this. I was there, I was tired, frustrated, not sleeping, gaining weight. I couldn't explain what was happening to my body. I felt like I had lost access to the version of the self that I once knew. And then came a circle of friends that was with women of my age, traveling together, and somewhere between the appetizers and the wine and the main course, we got honest. And the honesty helped me understand what I needed to do. So one of my colleagues shared that she'd been going through similar symptoms and we talked about it. She went to see a functional medicine doctor, took the right labs, did the blood work, sort of understanding her own body and owning that process and adjusting her treatments according to it. It's not one size fits all. And I'm by no means a doc. I just want to help other women. They're going through what I went through. And we should share it with each other. It's about getting it right. It's not just the hormones, it's the supplements and the dietary needs. It's the sleep. But here's what I know I have more energy. I've been sleeping through the night, real sleep this night. So it's calmed. I won't say they're gone completely, but they really calm. The 2 a.m. anxiety that was ambushing me is manageable in a way that wasn't before. And most importantly, I feel present again as an executive leader. As I had Madeline at 41 and balancing a challenging career with children, I'm very aware of what time means. And I wanted to keep up with her. I want to be on the trampoline, I want to roller skate, I want to turn cartwheels, I want to jump rope, I want to run and races alongside her. And I can't do any of that if I'm running on empty. And you can't either. Taking care of your body is it's so important. And feeling physically challenged, you can't show up for your career, for your family, for yourself. And that's the whole point of why we do what we do. Here's something I want to be very clear about before we dive in. I'm not a doctor. I'm a healthcare executive, speech pathologist by profession, and a woman who did a lot of research, had a lot of conversations, and found out what worked for me and for my body. What I'm encouraging you to do is do the same. Talk to people, do the lab work. I just want to share my journey with you. Your journey needs to start with your own blood work and your own doctor. But I also believe we learn from each other, and somebody needs to hear this. So here we go. I was not someone who wanted to go straight to pharmaceuticals. That was the mindset going in. Let's try the natural route first. Let's see what's actually happening before we start adding things. So my doctor and I looked at comprehensive labs together and made decisions based on what my numbers were actually showing. Some natural supplements first. And then we landed on compounding bioidentical HRT because my labs indicated that was the right move for me. It took some adjustments and some negotiations from that doctor and advocating for myself in a medical setting. And sometimes that's what it takes. But we landed on this. These are my non-negotiables. Magnesium at night. Magnesium glycenate is best for sleep and calming the nerve nervous system. Magnesium citrate is best for regularity and digestion. Now we've talked about magnesium before on this show, but I want to go deeper here because in perimenopause, this is one that's doing triple duty for me. It's helping me sleep, it's helping me with restless legs and muscle cramps. And I'm going to say something that someone out there needs to hear. It helps keep me regular for the first time in my life. And speaking of regular, okay, you guys, this might be a little TMI for this moment in the history of the podcast, but somebody out there needs to hear this. I have struggled with this my whole life. As a child, I was eating prunes, drinking coffee, probably too young. That's probably why I'm so short. But I just needed to keep things moving. And I'm not kidding you. My body just didn't cooperate in that department from the very beginning. And I'm certain there are others of you out there like that. We just don't want to talk about it. A probiotic, I like athletic greens or groons, but also any probiotic will help. It's totally your preference. But the magnesium makes a huge difference. If you're in perimenopause and this is an issue for you, and I know it is for more of you than you're ever willing to admit, you are welcome. And while we're in full TMI territory, I have one more thing to say. And I'm going to say it because I know I am not alone. I have dealt with stress incontinence my entire adult life. Before babies, I always thought it was hormonely related because the severity would fluctuate with my cycle. I could never get a medical professional to agree with me or confirm. So I don't know. Maybe I made that up in my head. It is a problem when you deal with having incontinence issues as a young person. And usually when I brought it up, they were just like, Yeah, well, if I had babies or, you know, go to the bathroom. I am in the rehab world, so cagles, but I've never found that that worked. So I now can run without wet pants at the finish line. And if you're a runner, you know exactly what I'm saying. You're not alone. There's a lot of people. I've saw lots of wet pants out there when we run. But um, I'm just gonna say get your labs done, get take care of yourself, and maybe it can be a solution for you too. It's changed my life. So these are some things that I think have helped me. The NAD peptide, I take it as a shot for energy, for cellular repair, for anti-aging. It is better for absorption as a shot, but you can also take it orally. I feel great day to day, my energy, my mental clarity, my recovery. This is a game changer for me. Laposomal glutathione or taking it with an injection. It helps with inflammation. My labs improved when I added this one. This is all I need to know when my lab's inflammation showed that I knew it was working. Then we talked about before, creatine monohydrate. I cannot tell you how much it's helped with my muscle and my energy, just holding on to the muscle as I was losing weight. Creatine, glutathione, and ID. A good friend told me about glutathione and the creatine. And it's one of the best things that I've done for myself. I'm also gonna bring up basic. We talked about hydration all the way back in episode two, but I want to come back to it because in perimenopause, hydration becomes even more critical. Your body is working harder to regulate temperature and process hormones. Recover from everything that you're asking it to do. I aim for 90 ounces of alkaline water a day. And then I add a hydrogen tablet to one of my glasses. So that gives me around 100 ounces a day. You should aim for your body weight in ounces. In perimenopause, I would encourage you to go to your full body weight in ounces. Go back and listen to episode two for the full breakdown. All right. Number two. Protein. Minimum of 100 grams a day of protein when your hormones are shifting. Retention becomes something you have to be intentional about. Protein first at every meal. Build the rest of your plate around it. It's not complicated, it's consistency. I love a good bone broth during the day because that helps me, or a protein shake, because I just can't chew or swallow that much protein in a day. And then an apple a day. I know, I know, but hear me out on this one. Maddie Joe loves her a good apple, and we can have a little nighttime ritual where we share an apple before bed. It's like our nighttime sweet snack. Well it becomes a nice little happy at the end of the night with a cup of hot tea. But it's the fiber and natural sugar with your 10-year-old, and it's pretty good medicine. So try it. Black casserole. I know this sounds a weird, weird one. I fully acknowledge this sounds out there and weird, but I put it in my bell and belly button, I rub it around. And if you look up the research, I actually believe it helps me with digestion and rest. I can't fully explain it, but that's the routine. So I'm sticking with it and it's working. It's your body, it's your decisions. I just like sharing things that work. It perimopause is not going to look exactly like mine. Your labs are gonna be different, your body is different, your history is different. What I want you to take from this is not my supplement list. It's talking about it. It's a mindset, it's learning, it's doing what works for you. Get the blood work, understand your body, find a doctor who will listen to you and who will let you have a say and understanding in what you're doing. Do your own research, build your community. Ask me if you have questions. Again, I'm not a healthcare professional on perimenopausal. So here's my bottom line on all of this. Your perimenopause is not going to look exactly like mine. Your labs are different, your body is different, your history is different. What I really want you to take from this is not my supplement list, it's the mindset. Get the blood work, find a doctor who's actually willing to look at it with you and explain it to you to help you understand your own body, do your own research, talk to your people, and then make decisions that are best for you and your body at that time. Words matter. This week's word is advocate. As a speech language pathologist, I've spent my career understanding how the words we use shape our reality. And one of the most powerful things I have learned is that people who get the best outcomes in relationships, in healthcare, in life, in their careers are the ones who speak up for themselves. Be an advocate for your body, advocate for your answers when something feels wrong. Advocate for a second opinion. There's nothing wrong with that. If the first one doesn't sit right, do the research and find another professional. Advocate for the version of yourself that deserves to feel good in her own skin. Nobody is gonna do that for you but you. You can do it for yourself starting today. It's okay. Advocate. Use it, mean it, understand it, and be confident with it. All right, so for your weekly pep talk, write this down and say it to yourself. You are allowed to say something is wrong and I need help figuring out what it is. You're allowed to say, I don't understand what's happening to my body, and you're allowed to push back if you don't like what you're being told. You're allowed to ask more questions. You're allowed to find a different doctor if the first one doesn't listen or you don't agree with the answer. Your body is not the problem. It is home that you live in that you were given, and you deserve a home that feels good. Showing up for your health is not vanity, it's not weakness, it is not complaining. It is one of the bravest and most important things you will ever do for yourself and for your family. And you are worth every single question, every bit of research, every appointment it takes to get there. So last week we talked about creatine and magnesium, which I love them both. And this week we just went deeper on both. If you've not started it yet, this is your sign. Go back to episode 12 and listen and ask the questions. Talk to your dog, don't do anything that you shouldn't do. But I love creatine and magnesium. So this week on your sparkling glow up for champagne smiles and magical miles, it's simple. It ties directly into everything we've just talked about. Protein first, every mil. When your hormones are shifting, your body's ability to build and hold on to muscles change. And muscles are not just about how you look, it's about your metabolism, your energy, your bone density, and your long-term health. Getting intentional about protein every mill is one of the most important practical things that you can do. I had to learn that the hard way. I was a big protein eater. And I'm not talking about making complicated meal plans before you eat anything else. What's your protein source? Eggs, Greek, yogurt, chicken, cotton, cheese, a healthy protein shake. Be careful because there's a lot of bad ones out there. But start there and build the rest of your meal around it. It's not, it's very simple. It's not that sexy, but it works. I'll share some of my protein options with you in the show notes. And if you want to reach out to me, I'll let you know. It's it's always difficult to get enough protein in your body. All right, so my breakthrough in this whole paramenopause journey was realizing that feeling bad had quietly become my new normal, and I had to stop expecting anything different. That's not okay. You're worth it. Take care of it. Having a healthy conversation at dinner with some of my friends opened something up in me because I realized that it's okay to say it out loud. You don't have to hide it, you can accept it. And I thought, why am I hiding and keeping this to myself? I need to share it with you. I need to let you guys know this because hopefully someone will listen and it'll help you too. So I have a challenge for you. Make your appointment, do your blood work, find a doctor, talk to your friends and find a doctor, a functional medicine OB, someone that you can talk to about what's going on at a perimenopausal specialist. But just make the appointment this week. It doesn't take that long, do it for yourself, but ask the questions and be an advocate. From the pages section this week, I want to introduce you to a book that I think every woman in her 40s needs to have on her nightstand. It's called The New Menopause by Dr. Mary Claire Haber. She has built an enormous community of women by doing exactly what we're trying to do here, by being honest, relatable, and refusing to let women be dismissed or underrated when it comes to their hormonal health. So what I love about this book is the way she writes about how for too long women's symptoms have been minimized, misdiagnosed, or simply not taken seriously, and how the powerful thing a woman can bring to her doctor's appointment is knowledge about her own body. The takeaway that I kept coming back to is the idea that knowledge is not the enemy of medicine, it is the beginning of better medicine. When I walked into my doctor's office informed, asking questions, knowing what I wanted to discuss, everything changed. I stopped being a patient who was told what to do and became a partner in my own care, being an advocate, which is what we all should do. And I'm very passionate about that. I was that way with my childbirth era and now with my adulthood. Changing subjects, I want to tell you something that happened this weekend with Maddie Jo. You know, she loves roller skates, you know, she likes to take over my podcasts and ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up. You know, she makes cloud slime and snow slime and all the slimes. But she also ran her 15th 10K at Disney. We what I want to do is be able to keep up with her. I am an older mom and I want to be able to jump on the trampoline. I want to be roller skate. I want to turn the cartwheels in the backyard. We jump rope together. She runs alongside me in Disney races. And I made a promise to myself when I had her at a 41-year-old older mom that I'm going to keep up with this child. I want to be present. I want to be strong. And I want to be at the finish line with her and all the things. So this past weekend, um, I was so proud of her. Well, she was we ran a 5K together, but she ran a full mile without stopping, which usually she's complaining a little bit about. I'm just so grateful and blessed that getting my health under control and get finding my energy and finding myself again during perimenopause rather than giving up and just saying I'm getting older, I'm fighting it. And it makes me so happy that I can do that with her. I can stay up late and have an apple on the couch, and I can put my roller skates on and I can run those races. I almost lost that version of myself, and I almost accepted that that was okay and having a foggy mind and being tired, and it's not okay. It doesn't have to be. And that is your magical mile. The miles you log taking care of yourself are not selfish. They are the reason you can show up for everyone else. Advocating for your health is not a luxury. It is how you stay in the race. All of them. The Disney 5Ks, at the school pickup line, the trampoline sessions, the quiet Tuesday nights when your kids just need you to be there with them doing homework. Take care of yourself so you can be there for all of it. Thank you so much for being here for episode 13 of Champagne Smiles and Magical Miles. You know I love this so much, and I hope you do too. If this episode resonated with you, please share it. There is someone in your life who needs this conversation and does not know how to start. Send it to them, tag me, tell me your story, tell me where you are in this journey. I read it all, and you can text me directly through the podcast, DM me at Stephanie in the Parks on any platform, or email me at Stephanieintheparks at gmail.com. And if you have not already, please follow me. Subscribe, check it all out. I love you guys. Until next time, book the trip, read the book, sign up for the race, pop the champagne, do whatever it is that makes you feel alive and feel like yourself. Love, hugs, kisses. It's Maddie Joe time. Cheers.